


They say you can't go home again...

by ablackberrywinter



Category: Nancy Drew (Video Games)
Genre: F/F, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-04
Updated: 2015-11-04
Packaged: 2018-04-30 00:14:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5143205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ablackberrywinter/pseuds/ablackberrywinter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Deirdre Shannon returns to River Heights after years away. She finds not much has changed in the town, including Nancy Drew herself. Experiencing family dramas, and the resurgence of her feelings for Nancy, Deirdre is at a loss as to what to do. She thought she'd changed, but somethings never change, and they do say you can't go home again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	They say you can't go home again...

**Author's Note:**

> This is set several years after Deirdre & Nancy finish high school and there are no mysteries in this one. The title is inspired by Miranda Lambert's song "The house that built me."

They say you can't go home again...

 

Deirdre Shannon stepped out of her expensive sports car, and surveyed the scene before her. Her parents' home still looked much the same. The gardens were still kept perfect – Not a blade out of sight. The roses had bloomed beautifully this year. Deirdre sighed, and placed her sunglasses onto the bridge of her nose. She wore white shorts – a clear sign of wealth – with a pink sleeveless peplum top. Her hair was blow dried, shiny and swinging around her tanned shoulders. Deirdre smiled to herself. The short holiday in the Bahamas had made her looked relaxed, and sun-kissed. 

She let herself into her parents' home. It was quiet as always. Being an only child, Deirdre had man memories of playing quietly with her dolls. The Shannon house was silent most of the time. Her parents barely spoke, and secretly, Deirdre had hoped they'd divorced once she'd left. Clearly, they weren't staying together for her. 

Entering the parlor, Deirdre found her mother sitting, reading the newspaper silently. She didn't look up. Deirdre coughed quietly.

“Oh. Deirdre! You're home!” Her mother was an older version of Deirdre, with short black hair, and crystal blue eyes. She wore a light blue twin-set, with cream coloured slacks. 

“Yes, mom. I got in an hour ago, and came straight here.” Deirdre smiled.   
“Well, you're looking very healthy these days. Did the holiday go well?”   
Deirdre nodded. “It was good.”  
“And how is work these days?”   
Deirdre worked for a fashion magazine in New York. If she was truthful, the moment she could leave River Heights, she did. She left for college, and then moved to New York for work. She hadn't missed this town at all. 

“It's great. I'm really enjoying it. Well, there's nothing bad about writing about fashion, is there?” She laughed slightly.  
Mrs Shannon smiled. “No, nothing bad about that at all. Now, your father is at golf right now. But he'll be home for dinner. Where are you staying?”

“At the Rose Inn.” Deirdre said, naming a local hotel.   
Her mother nodded. “Come for the dinner then.” 

“Sure.” Deirdre leaned down and kissed her mother on the cheek.

“Bye.” She left Mrs Shannon to her newspaper. 

 

Deirdre hopped back into her car, deciding she felt like a walk along the main drag. Driving towards the centre of the town, Deirdre noticed how little had changed. The shops had remained the same, only now with peeling paint, and broken signs. The people themselves looked broken down, with deeply lined faces and leathery skin. 

She parked her car and began to walk. No one seemed to recognise her, unsurprisingly. Deirdre had changed a great deal since her last time here. Then she saw one person she knew. Bess Marvin. Bess was animatedly chatting to someone. She wore a white sundress, with cork wedges. She still looked the same in the face. Deirdre then noticed the other person Bess was speaking to. Nancy Drew. Nancy looked different somehow, from everyone else in this town. Her outfit was nothing special – blue jeans and a red plaid shirt – her hair was merely tied up in a pony tail. Deirdre noticed though that Nancy's eyes seem to sparkle. Her hair danced about the sun, its red colour looked more like strawberry blonde. She laughed at something Bess said, and it sounded musical to Deirdre's ears. Deirdre almost blushed when she caught Nancy's eye. 

“Deirdre? Deirdre Shannon? Is that you?” Nancy asked, she frowned in concentration.   
Deirdre giggled – so unlike her! - and said “Yeah, it's me!”   
“Wow.” Bess said. “You're the last person I expected to see today!”   
Deirdre smiled in what she hoped was a mysterious way.   
“Well, I'm full of surprises. I decided to come back for a little bit of a holiday.”   
“Sounds fun. Ok, Nancy, I'll call you later.” Bess said, waving as she left.

Nancy turned to Deirdre. “So. What have you been doing since you left River Heights?”  
Deirdre shrugged. “I went to college. Now I work in New York for a fashion magazine.”  
“Ooh, that must be fun!” Nancy smiled.   
“Yeah, it is. I get sample clothes and to hang out with some pretty hot models.”   
Nancy chuckled.   
“So what have you been doing?” Deirdre asked. She was almost afraid of the answer for some reason she couldn't place.

“I've been working as a writer actually. I've written some mystery books under a pseudonym. I also write pieces for magazines on the side.”

Deirdre nodded.   
“So we're in similar fields!” Nancy said, smiling.

“Right. And what happened to Ned?” Deirdre asked.   
“Oh. He moved. He lives in Japan, with his wife.” Nancy's looked dejected.   
“Oh, that's hard. You guys were close right?” Deirdre said, pretending she didn't remember every kiss Nancy and Ned had at the school dances, or how they looked at each other in class.

“Yeah. But I didn't want to move, and Ned did. So we broke up. He seems happy now, which is good I guess.”   
“Sure.” Deirdre wondered how to keep the conversation going. She had always had feelings for Nancy, she couldn't deny it. However, she'd done at good job over the years of pushing them down, while she played the field with those she met in New York. Now back in Nancy's presence, she could hardly remember what her lovers looked like. None of them had Nancy's wholesome smile or Midwestern sensibility which had always been appealing. 

“So, I have to get going. But it was fun seeing you.” Nancy began to walk away.  
“Wait.” Deirdre blushed at the sound of her own voice.  
“Um. Do you still live with your dad? Over on Lake Street?”   
Nancy shook her head.  
“No, I live in the cottage on Maple Drive.”  
Deirdre nodded, she knew which cottage Nancy meant. Their English teacher had lived in it. Deirdre guessed, rather depressingly, that this meant their teacher had passed away.   
“Well, I'll see you around, I guess.” Nancy smiled as she left.

Deirdre stood there, for a moment, before leaving. She headed back to the hotel. She needed a shower, and time to think.

When Deirdre reached the hotel, she saw a gentleman she recognised in the restaurant. Her father. He sat, looking dapper in a suit, with a young woman, who was not Deirdre's mother. Then, they both laughed, as Deirdre's father ran his hand on the woman's thigh. Deirdre felt sick. 

Without thinking, she rushed up to them. 

“Dad? What is going on?” Her father looked up in confusion.   
“Deirdre? What are you doing here?” He asked. 

“Never mind that. What is going on here?” Deirdre said, somewhat aware her voice was cracking slightly. 

“Deirdre, honey, nothing's going on. Susan here is just a client.” Deirdre's father said, in a   
sickeningly reassuring voice. He reached out to touch Deirdre's arm. She jerked away.  
“Does mom know?”  
He laughed. “Know that I meet with my clients for work? I'm sure she does. She sits in that house that my money earned all day, and spends my money on those clothes and fancy perfume, doesn't she?”   
Deirdre turned away, her eyes filled with tears.

Reaching her room, Deirdre stripped all her clothes off. Stepping inside of the shower, she felt the water pulsating upon her body. Closing her eyes, she felt tired. Even though she knew her parents weren't happy, Deirdre had never thought of her father as the kind of man who did things like that. It was almost tacky for the Shannons. It was tawdry. Deirdre dried off, then pulled on a singlet, and boxer shorts. She wasn't going to dinner tonight. She'd rather eat room service instead. 

Lying on the bed, Deirdre watched bad reality shows for an hour, before she heard a knock on the door.   
Sighing, she got up to open it. She figured it was her father.  
Opening the door, she saw Nancy standing there.

“Um. What are you doing here?”  
“I heard about what happened with you and your dad.”  
“How?” Deirdre exclaimed.   
“Small town. Everyone knows. It was a public place.” Nancy shrugged, clearly used to River Heights' lack of privacy. 

“Oh gosh.” Deirdre smacked her hand to her forehead.   
“I guess my mom knows now.” 

Nancy nodded. “That's how I found out where you were. I wanted to see if you're all right.”   
“I'm fine.” Deirdre said, suddenly feeling vulnerable.   
“That's nice you came over, but I'm fine.”   
“Deirdre, if you ever need to talk...” Nancy's sentence trailed off.   
“No. I'm fine. I don't need to talk. I just need to be alone right now.” Deirdre snapped. Nancy nodded once more, then left quietly.

Closing the door, Deirdre sighed. There was something about Nancy that made her nervous.


End file.
